Disk wheel for automobiles



W. E. WILLIAMS. DISK WHEEL FOR AUTOMOBILES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. a, 1919.

Patented Feb. 7, 1922.

UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DISK WHEEL ron AUTOMOBILES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. '7, 1922.

Application filed September 8, 1919. Serial No. 322.387.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM ERASTUS .WILLIAMS, a citizen of the United States,

resident ofOhicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Disk Wheels for Automobiles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to wheels having a body made of a single disk which is demountable from the hub by removing the *fastenings which secure it to the hub.

' The object of my invention is to produce the slmplest, cheapest, lightest and strongest wheel possible of this typ and one that may be more easily demounted than other types and that will be ,free from certain defects and objections more or less attendant upon wheels of this type, together with other and is dished and curved as shown, but the main center line of the load of the wheel passes through the approximate section of that portion in contact with the hub. i

It is desirable to have a slight degree of elasticity in the wheel and to bring this about I provide a bulge or swell 2 which occurs in the thicker portion of the wheel.

where the strength of the metal permits a slight elastic bending moment.

To aid in this elastic feature I form an odd number of slits as indicated by 5, which go through the bulge -only and ar simply shear cuts, no metal being removed, but only cut asunder and then pressed back to form, so that the slits are substantially covered up by the painting and do not interfere with the appearance or the washing of the wheel.

These slits extend only part way across the bulge 2 and do not extend into the section clamped by the hub members. The slits are arranged with the idea of varying the stresses of compression and tension in a slight elastic movement, involved in varying loads on the wheel.

The rim of my disk is composed of a member 6 and an in-turned flange 7, upon which there is an outward turned edge 8. The flange 7 is not parallel to the plane of the wheel, but is inclined thereto as is also the outward margin 9 of the disk 1. By making these two parts at an incline to the plane of thewheel I avoid bending my disk where it is thinnest, which would be required were I to make the outer margin of the disk in a plane. The rim 6 is provided with the supplemental flange 10, which combine to form the tread here shown, suitable to receive a straight side tire, but it might be shaped.

to receive any design of tire.

The supplemental or companion flange 10 is provided with a flange 11 which fits the flange 7 of the rim 6 and butts against the outward turned edge 8 of the flange 7. Thus the companion flange 10 is held in registry and sustained with its load by the ed e 8.

Screws 12, or bolts if desired,'pass t rough the flange 11 and the margin of the disk 1 and are secured into small blocks 13, which are riveted through their small flange at 14 to the disk and flange 7 of the rim 6. Other rivets 15 rivet the margin of the disk to the flange 7 of the rim 6. A small flange 16 is provided on the disk that is snugly in contact with the inner side of the rim 6 and may when desired be riveted or welded through it.

The inclined position of'the flanges 11 and 7 and the margin'of the disk permits an inclined position of the screws 12 and this inclined position aids in holding the companion flange 10 not only in. a lateral direction, but also in a manner to resist, to some degree, the vertical thrusts that. may come upon the companion flange 10.

The hub here shown is for the front wheel, but in so far as relates to the disk itself the connections are exactly the same for the disk as is the case for therear wheel.

17 indicates the hub proper, such as might be used with a wooden wheel. On the outside of this hub I provide a companion member 18 which is secured at the flange 19 by the rivets 20 to the flange 21 of the hub 17. The flange 19 of the member 18 has an outward projecting flange 22 which in connection with, the inclined face 23 forms an angular groove into which there fits an angular depression bulge or swell 24 of the disk 1 itself.

On the outside of this angular projection cure and easily released when desired.

24 of the disk there is a ring 25 provided with the inclined inner edge 26 and the inclined shoulder 27 and flat portion 28 clamp against the disk by means of the studs 29 provided with the nuts 30.- The studs 29 are threaded at their other ends 31 and serve also to bind the member 18 to the hub 17. In a wheel of this type, which is demounted at the hub, it is desirable to have this demountable fastening very 1s;-

"Y means of the annular, V-like depression in the member 18, the corresponding embossed annular projection, which does not quite reach the bottom of the said depression but engages the disk with the member 18, and the like formed ring 25 wedged by bolts into the embossed recess of the disk, the latter is firmly gripped in such manner that practically all strains are safely trans mitted or resisted. Although thus rigidly gripped, unscrewing the nuts 30 leaves the parts entirely free to separate, giving the wheel the very desirable quick demounting feature.

It is to be: understood that various changes in details may be made, and that while no attempt is made to show all or even some such changes, the claims are intended to cover more than the exact forms shown.

What I claim is:

1. A wheel disk having at a material distance from both its hub and rim regions an annular bulge transversely sheared without removing metal and formlng an aperture at intervals to render this medial zone of the wheel slightly elastic while leaving its surface in appearance substantially continuous.

2. The combination with a circumferentially flanged hollow walled hub structure, of'a disk member overlapping the flange of said structure, and means for detachably binding the disk to the flange, one of the overlappingportions being provided with a broad flat bottomed annular depression having inwardly converging walls and the other portion having a companion projection wedging between said wall and at some distance from said bottom.

3. The combination with a hub having an annular flange provided with an annular inwardly narrowlng groove in its lateral face and a second annular flange supporting the first, of a disk having on its lateral face an annular projection fitting said groove, and bolts passing through said diskand both hub flanges.

.4. The combination with a hub structure having about its inner end a circumferential flange provided with an outwardly open annular depression with lateral walls converging toward a broad flat bottom, of a wheel disk overlapping said flange and having an annular projection wedging in the outer portion of said depression, and a series of bolts releasably pressing the co-acting wedging faces into rigid contact and binding the hub and disk together along annular surfaces far from the body of the hub.-

5. The combination with a hub structure consisting of a hub body having at its inner end a broad circumferential flange and a materially larger sleeve-like member having its'outer end compressed against the hub body and provided at its inner end with a circumferential flange fixed to the body flange, a disk overlapping the flange of the sleeve-like member, the overlapping portions being provided with an annular groove and companion rib, respectively, and means for forcing the rib and grooveinto detachable rigid engagement. Signed at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, this fifth day of September, 1919. i

WILLIAM ERASTUS WILLIAM-S.- Witnesses:

JOHN B. JEFFERSON,

l3. J. BERNHARD. 

